Atrial Fibrillation

Atrial fibrillation (AF) has strong associations with other cardiovascular diseases, including heart failure, coronary artery disease (CAD), heart valvular disease, diabetes mellitus and hypertension. It features an irregular and often rapid heartbeat (see the first picture below). The exact mechanisms by which AF is predisposed by cardiovascular risk factors are not fully understood but under intense investigation. Excess catecholamine, hemodynamic stress, atrial ischemia, atrial inflammation, metabolic stress and activation of the neurohumor cascade are all supposed to promote AF. Atrial flutter is similar to atrial fibrillation, but your atria's rhythm is more organized and less chaotic than atrial fibrillation 's abnormal patterns. You may sometimes have atrial flutter which develops into atrial fibrillation, and vice versa. The risk factors for and the atrial flutter symptoms and causes are similar to those of atrial fibrillation. In someone who has atrial flutter, for example, strokes are also a concern. As with atrial fibrillation, atrial flutter is not usually life-threatening when it is treated properly.